Konoha's Cherry Blossom
by moonlight.soul.FIRE
Summary: "You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for. Sakura x Multiple
1. Naruto

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

The sand-weilding Kazekage spent merely weeks in Konoha; but in that brief period of time, he noted that every single male shinobi from the Village of the Leaf had their sights set on a certain rose-haired kunoichi in some sort of manner.

It all started when he arrived in Konoha so that he and his physicians could study Tsunade and Sakura's medicinal prowess in effort to further Suna's quality of healing. He would be residing in The Village for a decent while, so the Hokage graciously set him up with a suite in a quaint onsen.

He was silently thankful that Tsunade did not give in to Naruto's pleas for—in his words—"Oi, just let that Gaara-bastard stay with me!"

Sure he wanted to pursue a friendship with the loud-mouthed nin, but he wasn't too keen on the idea to share an apartment that was certain to be unearthly messy with dirty clothes and open ramen cups.

Other than that, he was rather excited to see everyone from his younger days, to see how they've changed over the years. He was ready to try and be more than Subaku no Gaara to his fellow shinobi, he was eager to be a friend.

Naruto, just a fraction bit taller than him now, was ambling beside him with his arm locked around his neck to show him around Konoha. Years ago, the blonde ninja would have been crushed by the sand for daring to place his skin anywhere near his own.

But now he was content with the human contact.

He still wasn't fond of the sound of Naruto's yelling, however. Especially when it was dangerously close to shattering his eardrum.

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

Gaara didn't even notice that said kunoichi had appeared right before him, as he was trying to bring the gift of sound back to his ear once it ceased ringing. He glanced over at her.

Boy, she was pink.

He was fully aware of her oddly colored hair, but in his absence it seemed…pinker?

Or maybe she was just prettier.

Could Gaara eloquently define 'pretty?' No, not really. But he knew attraction when he felt it; he wasn't naïve as he was at age thirteen. Many uncomfortable talks with Kankuro had taught him the meaning several bodily reactions; therefor he was fully aware that the churning in his stomach was not from indigestion.

She was taller, probably reaching his height easily. She had more muscle than he remembered, and was somehow able to look threatening and coy all at once. She kept her hair short, which was beneficial as a fighter; long hair was too cumbersome.

He noted that her eyes were as bright as the budding spring, and Gaara could have nearly slapped himself for sounding so garishly poetic.

She greeted them with a smile and wave, Naruto already bounding towards her to hold her in a headlock. He was denied that privilege when her clenched fist met his head, knocking him to the ground in one foul swoop. She stomped the terrain next to him, sending small vibrations through the earth.

"You idiot, what did I tell you? You are not allowed to leave the hospital until your ankle is completely rehabilitated!"

Gaara raised an—was that amusement—eyebrow: she's scolding him for not letting himself heal properly with an unnecessarily violent punch?

"Sakura-chan," Naruto whined from the ground, "I just wanted to show Gaara-bastard around Konoha." Gaara's eyebrow when from amused to slightly annoyed at Naruto's vulgar nickname for him. Sakura took equal notice as she slammed her foot against the blonde's cheek.

"Naruto," she chided—Gaara was a bit taken back that she addressed him so casually without an honorific—"don't talk to the Kazekage that way!"

"Gaara," he found himself speaking without proper compliance from his brain, "just, Gaara."

Sakura hefted her friend from the ground and threw him over her back with an ease that was odd for a girl her size and stared at Gaara as if he grew a second head. She quickly shed her expression for one of genuine friendliness.

"Gaara-san," she said, testing the waters of informality, "I will see you and your medics later!" She leaped for the hospital to return her knuckle-headed teammate,

And Gaara was not at all blind to the obvious euphoria plastered over Naruto's face as he snuggled his head between Sakura's shoulders.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_First chapter, hope you guys like it._

Reviews and Feedback welcomed!


	2. Kiba

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

He decided to wander around the hospital to see the layout and structure of their facilities and how they managed themselves in comparison to Suna. It seemed to be a slow day, because no one was chastising him for freely roaming around the halls—but then again he _was_ the Kazekage. Several nurses gave him looks that were an odd mix of fright and intrigue, it was rather discomforting: he felt like an exotic animal, something he was begrudging growing used to from the female genins back in Suna.

Doing his best to avoid the company of any more nurses, he wandered the halls and glanced around for something that would capture his interest.

"Using different perfume now, Sakura-chan?"

That would do it.

He stepped towards the room and leaned his head in to see dog nin, Inuzuka Kiba with a smug and toothy grin while Sakura was a bit flustered, but still composed enough to sigh with exasperation.

"Your sense of smell caught me, Kiba-kun. I was trying out a coconut scented spray instead of jasmine."

"I think Inuzuka-scented perfume would be much more fitting," Kiba jeered with his fangs even more prominent. He only chuckled when Sakura's reflexes earned him a light slap on the arm. Only Sakura would be able to get away with smacking her patients for being loutish, Gaara noted.

Sakura read over Kiba's medical clipboard and sat at his side.

"Cracked ribs and a few ruptured organs. Kunai marks covering entire back and left calf," she stated evenly. Her voice may have been collected, but the pink-haired medic sent a quick glare over to Kiba with her lips thinning at his carelessness. The dog nin raised his hands in defense and quickly interjected before she could lecture him,

"Those rogues were tough, I swear! These are not self-inflicted wounds. You really think I would rupture my own organs just to see you?" Gaara raised an ear in interest. Had he inflicted wounds on himself just to see Sakura before?

"Well, you did jam a kunai in your thigh a couple weeks ago, then had the gall to come into the hospital requesting a sponge bath." Kiba laughed as an unidentifiable emotion washed over Gaara's body.

"Do I get one today?"

Warned by her silence, Gaara anticipated for the boy to suffer the same fate as Naruto a few days prior, but was surprised when she didn't slap him.

"Inuzuka!"

Gaara nearly cringed.

Though the dog nin was not thrown face first out the window, her words vibrated every corner of the room with intended malice.

Her voice was almost as menacing as her lethal punches.

The last thing Gaara saw before dismissing himself was Kiba giving Sakura that famous fanged smile and his hand flush again her backside.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Since the first chapter is so short, I wanted to upload this one. It's a shame this one is short as well, I rather enjoy Kiba and Sakura for some odd reason. _

_Nonetheless, here you go! I promise the next chapters will be longer than 500 words!_


	3. Neji

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Neji was a very proud ninja: a man of little words or actions, but commanding nonetheless. His gaze was always steady and somber, as if he were a Lord addressing his subjects. The fact that he was unfortunately born into a so-called 'lesser' branch of the Hyuuga family did nothing to sully his regal demeanor. Nothing seemed to ruffled Neji's metaphorical feathers,

Except for Sakura, that is.

Gaara had his arms crossed tightly, and a look of unadulterated disapproval was making its presence known as Sakura dragged him to a slightly higher-end cosmetic shop.

It was supposed to be a simple day: he would follow the pink haired medic to receive a few items that were not currently growing in Suna and try to formulate a way for his land the adapt to the plants, or set up a trading line with Konoha. Easy. Simple. Painless.

But dammit, why did she have to drag him along while she did her goddamn grocery shopping? No, it was not even something as dignified as groceries—groceries were normal, necessary fundamentals for adequate living, they were nourishment—no, she was forcing him to shop for _shampoo_.

Shampoo!

And not even the cheap, nondescript kind that Temari usually bought, apparently Sakura's hair care products had cost more than his budget for a week's worth of dinner. How shameful for a serious kunoichi.

But Gaara had to admit that it did smell… interesting.

He didn't have to be near the girl to be able to smell the palpable air of strawberries that radiated from her gleaming rose tresses. It was a change from the scents of Suna for sure, a desert land such as theirs did not have such smells—but that didn't necessarily mean he liked it. It was sweet smelling, and Gaara didn't do sweets. At all.

And yet, as he saw the casual smile on Sakura's face it didn't seem to matter what he himself liked or didn't like.

His brow lowered into a noticeable frown as Sakura turned around and motioned for the reluctant Kazekage to follow her inside—despite the obvious disgust Gaara showed at being surrounded by so many aromas.

"Please, Gaara-san I just need to pick up a couple things before we return to the hospital. It will be quick, I promise!"

Gaara's pride was at dire stake as he followed the woman into the cosmetic shop, and was quickly bombarded with what could only be described as a multi-headed snake of scents comprised of jasmine, cherries, and a thousand other girly fragrances. He instinctively clasped his hands around his nose and felt his eyes glaze over with a tiny film of moisture.

Sakura looked at the sand nin, a little amused and a little guilty. It was irresponsible to force Gaara to tag along while she did a little frivolous shopping, as well he was probably having sensory overload from the aroma of the shop. She quickly sauntered over to the area where her shampoo resided and plucked two bottles from the shelf and headed for the front desk.

That is… until she saw Neji holding a square block of men's soap on the other side of the shop.

Gaara inwardly cursed as she became distracted from her payment obligations and followed her line of vision to the Hyuuga. The gleam in her eyes suggested familiarity and playfulness: two reactions that befuddled the Kazekage, even more so that they were directed at the noble Hyuuga Neji.

"Neji-kun!"

Gaara tensed; did she have the authority to address him in such a manner? 'Kun,' really? What disturbed Gaara even more than her sugary-sweet voice was Neji's completely composed response.

"Sakura-san. Kazekage-sama."

Gaara begrudgingly followed the pink haired medic towards the men's side of the shop, though he was little less nauseated when the odor was more bearable: as it consisted more of demure woodsy smells and spices. He removed his hand from his face and bowed, which caught Neji slightly off guard. Slightly. His pearly white eyes skipped from Gaara straight to Sakura.

"What brings you here, Sakura-san?"

Somehow, the Suna leader could gauge that Neji was actually implying _'Why are you here in a casual setting with Subaku no Gaara?' _Sakura merely threw off his cautious tone and laughed.

"Gaara-san and I were picking up herbs that aren't native in Suna, and I kind of selfishly brought him here since I needed to buy more toiletries." Sakura's tone was apologetic, but Gaara could sense that he would have to endure his sensory agony a little bit longer considering her friendly tone with the Hyuuga. Her bright green eyes observed the soap in Neji's hand expectantly as if it were a hidden gem to find him behaving so normally out of his accustomed prideful disposition. She reached out and grabbed a nearby block identical to Neji's.

"So, you like this soap? I can see why, it's very clean smelling."

Well of course, the incomparable Hyuuga Neji was a regal, high-nosed bird. Surely the only fragrance to grace his body would be pure and fresh, not distracting like a powerful musk smell or something of equal caliber.

Nonetheless, Neji's towering pedestal seemed to plummet back to Earth as his eyes widened the tiniest bit. After overcoming his brief astonishment, he simply nodded.

"Hai, I guess I do." His vision trailed the two bottles in Sakura's arm, and suddenly Gaara felt as if he had been shunned from their presence as his head leaned faintly towards hers, amused and dignified.

"Strawberry?"

Sakura immediately felt self-conscious by the mischief in his tone. She blushed and let a small bead of sweat form on her temple.

"Hai, I know it's a little strong, but it cleans all of the blood out of my hair after especially… demanding missions." At the mention of her mane, Neji flickered an eye across the top of her head. A small grin pulled at the corner of his lips and he spoke politely.

"It cannot be helped," meaning the pungent odor of her strawberry-scented tresses, "but I quite enjoy it."

Sakura and Gaara stood absolutely still, since when did the Hyuuga enjoy anything? Their shock only tugged harder at Neji's pleased expression as he closed his colorless eyes and nodded his head.

"Well I will not keep you and Kazekage-sama from your business, so I shall take my leave." He was ready to go on his merry way, until a thought entered his mind, prompting him to turn back to Sakura.

"Feel free to stop by the Hyuuga residence when you like, Sakura-san. My relatives always enjoy your medical treatment, as well as your company."

If not for Sakura's plucky attitude, she would have dropped unconscious right then and there from every ounce of her blood rushing to her face. She quickly recovered, paid for her shampoo, and took Gaara by the wrist in pursuit for the hospital, not without turning to the pearly-eyed jounin yelling in a tone so tinkling and kind,

"I'll see you tomorrow, Neji-kun!"

Relieved to be far away from the shop's unbearable aroma, Gaara could not help but twist his head to glance back at the Hyuuga.

Neji stood thunderstruck as if he were hearing Sakura's voice for the first time, a small inkling of pink graced his dignified cheeks as he closed his eyes and shook his head. With a small smile he turned the other direction.

Gaara concentrated on the small pink block of soap that was discreetly placed in his transparent bag.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Yessah, longer chapter. Hope you enjoy, please do tell me what you think!_


	4. Sai

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Sai was a rather odd individual, Gaara decided: this coming from the boy who was once possessed by the Great One-Tail and had no eyebrows.

But, Sai had a constant smile on his face, yet spoke to people in a matter-of-fact manner that would either embarrass them or cause them to snap in immediate anger.

For Sakura, it was both. His little nickname of 'ugly' was terribly demeaning, and yet, Sakura had grown numb to it. She no longer graced him with brutish punches when he so callously critiqued her, though it would have been her pleasure to knock him straight to Suna. She even expected, sometimes even anticipating the purr of his tactless comments once she was within earshot of him. Gaara was bemused how she could be so complacent with a man who constantly hurled insults at her.

He was sitting and sipping a cup of tea at an open café, silently marveling at how bright and lively Konoha was. Suna was definitely not this green or this full of wildlife. It was beautiful, really—if Gaara was capable of expressing the term 'beautiful' at all—and if the sand nin had any artistic talent, he would have painted the entire land of Konoha.

Thus entered Sai.

He was sitting far off from Gaara, but not totally out of his vision, and had one of his books out in what looked like a peaceful sketching session. Giving a bit of money to the waitress and excusing himself, he set out—for reasons unbeknownst to him—towards the artist shinobi. He was a friend of Naruto's—though Naruto might hesitate in admitting that he had a classical 'friendship' with a boy who constantly nagged him about his lack of endowment.

So if he was a friend of Naruto's, surely he could be a friend of Gaara's as well. But Gaara at once felt a wave of uneasiness as he approached the Team 7 substitute; he had never encountered him alone, and did not know how to properly address an artist while they worked, he did not want to insult him after all.

A familiar snort snapped him from his apprehension as Naruto materialized from the shadows next to Sai. He gave Gaara a knowing look and motioned for him to come closer towards the artist, who by now was swiftly closing his book and putting away all of his supplies.

He was no match for Naruto when the blonde snatched his leather-bound book and backed away from a smiling Sai. Somehow, Gaara was able to pick up a winding coil of irritation from the 'emotionless' ninja.

"What are you drawing now, you bastard?"

Gaara was beginning to think that 'bastard' was a common term of endearment for Naruto. Regardless, the blonde nin held the book high away from his teammate; and Sai, though smiling, was beginning to lose his patience. Naruto sprang from Sai's controlled iron grip into the trees, letting a few stray pages flutter to the ground. Not too long after, Sai was after the boy with two kunai clutched in either hand.

Gaara, after raising an unseen eyebrow at the antics that seemed to only involve Konoha ninjas, and plucked on of Sai's drawings from the air before it touched the ground. Expecting to see a duplicate of the landscape before him, he widened his eyes as he realized he was terribly wrong; the image that was plastered across the page had turned Gaara's skin completely alabaster.

It was Sakura.

Just a simple image of Sakura: but for some reason, Sai had a heavy hand when applying the rouge to her cheeks and nose, and her eyes were an overly saturated green that exuded a jubilant emotion beyond the confines of its 2D form. It didn't _not_ look like Sakura, it just looked like her as if caught candid by a camera during some sort of private moment: like smiling at a small flower or tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

And Gaara felt a bit foul for spying on such a moment. He quickly dropped the drawing, daring to glance at the others that littered around his feet.

Sakura.

Sakura Sakura Sakura.

Sketches, paintings, charcoal drawings, pastel colorings,

All of Sakura.

A knot quickly formed in Gaara's stomach, and his frozen face betrayed him by exuding unimaginable horror. He dropped the papers and backed away from the sound of Sai and Naruto fighting. From the little incident that had occurred right then Gaara was sure of two things.

One: Konoha was a hidden village comprised of very _very_ peculiar people.

And two: the spell of Haruno Sakura had chosen yet another victim with its merciless, viridian clutches.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_It's a little weird, but it's Sai._

_Have a good day/night!_


	5. Shikamaru

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Shikamaru was dating Yamanaka Ino. No one was at all surprised by the arrangement, though Gaara was a little bemused that his sister, Temari did not take the news too well after receiving a letter from her friends in Konoha. Regardless, the brilliant-but-idle tactician merely rolled his eyes as his friends reprimanded him with roars of "Finally, you lazy ass!" Ino merely giggled at the attention.

Shikamaru, as intelligent and laid back as he was, could honestly say that he was infatuated with the ice-blonde woman to the extent of even calling it 'love,' if he ever put down his Shogi blocks and used his damned words once in a while. Despite his aloofness, Ino was positively mesmerized by her teammate's unnatural intellect and did her best to reciprocate the 'love' that she shared as well.

But she could not play Shogi.

Sure she was smart on her own terms, but she didn't have quite the same aptitude towards the Japanese chess game as Shikamaru did.

Thus, she enlisted fellow genius, Sakura to play at least once a week against her boyfriend in exchange for valuable information the pink kunoichi might be able to tear from his concentrated state. Since Shikamaru didn't like his thoughts to be interrupted while he mulled over his moves, he was basically forced to dish tidbits of this and that in exchange for some godforsaken minutes of peace.

"Are you going to propose anytime soon?"

Shikamaru had his hands in his trademark 'thinking' position, but his twitching eyebrow betrayed his occupied mind.

"No," he mumbled slowly before returning to his blessed silence: by the placement of Sakura's pieces on the board he might be able to defeat her in six turns. However, by the restless tone in her voice, she was likely to just challenge him to a rematch until she got the confession she so desired.

"Do you at least have a ring for whenever you do finally ask her," she quipped. His lids snapped open and he moved his block without taking his beady eyes off the medic in front of him. His patience was dwindling quickly, as this was the fourth consecutive week she had asked him this.

He then decided he would enact revenge by beating her in three moves.

Sakura's brow furrowed as she realized her impending defeat. Ignoring the board entirely, she put her hands and her knees in a humorous manner: though meant to be imposing, her Indian-style posture made her look like an old man gifted with a frustrated, childlike face. She expounded an exasperated breath, shaking her pink tresses at the man.

"Why haven't you gotten her a ring yet?" Each passing word was twice as biting as the last, her frown getting deeper by the minute. Shikamaru was unperturbed by the kunoichi and sighed after he mumbled his well known phrase of 'Troublesome.'

"Because I just haven't," Shikarmaru deadpanned. Sakura fought the urge to flip over his Shogi table and throw him into the screen doors on his left. She was about to escalate her feral growling, before a knock on the wooden frame erased her anger entirely. Shikamaru turned towards the door suspiciously: Ino never knocked, and if it were an important message from ANBU, they would never enter through his house just to get back outside to his yard. With an awkward lean he slid the screen open.

"Gaara-san," Sakura chirped questionably. The auburn-haired nin shrugged as he crossed his arms and looked at the Shogi table as if it were a mythological creature from old day's lore.

"Hokage-sama _dismissed_ me after I requested her audience for further elaboration on our medical studies," he said darkly. Sakura's face turned an unsightly shade of green; Gaara must have walked in to Tsunade's infamous hangovers, thus probably receiving a brutal, unnecessary tongue-lashing. A small titter of nervous giggles filled the open air as Gaara continued to study the chessboard with mute fascination.

"Yamanaka-san allowed me in. She said Sakura was here," he explained to Shikamaru's quirked eyebrow. The Nara grunted in response and continued to stare down the rosette kunoichi, prompting her to move her game piece.

Without proper notice, Sakura's ungloved hand smashed down on the table, causing Gaara's arms to cross a little tighter and Shikamaru to groan in annoyance.

Sakura beamed devilishly, she was too childish to respectfully face her defeat and decided to disregard the failed game altogether in favor of intimidating the Nara.

"Shika-_kun_," Sakura sung grimly. Gaara, his ringed eyes still on the mutilated game board, glanced to the side at the medic, then to Shikamaru. The tactician's brow twitched impatiently as he tried to wriggle his game pieces from under her hand with little avail.

"What," he said curtly as he pried a queen block from her clenching fingers to replace it to its rightful position. In retaliation, the pink kunoichi just lifted the entire table and casted it to the side with a too wide smile gracing her cheeks.

"Let's forget Shogi and go shopping," she suggested with underlying meaning in her sentence. Gaara sat a little straighter in question to why Sakura sounded like a predatory animal, not to mention she was starting to look like one. His musings were answered as Sakura indirectly clarified their situation.

"Let's go pick out a ring for Ino-Pig, shall we?" Shikamaru muttered another 'troublesome' before subtly slanting down at the kunoichi's hands. Gaara's quiet gaze traveled from the medic's hands towards the tactician and back again.

Perhaps he was gauging the size of Sakura's hands? If her fourth finger were even close to the size of her childhood friend's, then ring shopping would ease the weight off Shikamaru's shoulders, making the niggling ordeal a whole heap less taxing.

Yet it somehow sent a contraction in Gaara's back as Shikamaru seemed completely unflustered by a stressful afternoon spent with Sakura,

An afternoon in which he would be placing ring after expensive ring on her dainty little finger for all of Konoha's civilians to see.

An afternoon all of Konoha would see the unfathomable joy that would light the kunoichi's eye as she would squeal, "This is the one," probably at the most costly engagement ring with Shikamaru just rolling his eyes and emptying his wallet on the counter.

Gaara was already mindful of the tactician's logic and prowess towards thinking ahead.

Therefore Shikamaru was most likely fully cognizant to the puzzled looks he would be receiving in the presence of the pink-haired girl, and the false assumption he would probably circulate.

But Shikamaru didn't seem to care.

In fact, he smiled.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_I feel like Shikamaru and Sakura would actually have this sort of relationship._

_I hope you guys like it as much as I did!_

_Also, I know it's a little early in the story to ask this, but would you guys like a reprise of everyone so there is like a part two, or a continuation of the story even after Gaara goes back to Suna?  
_

_Please, give me your thoughts and ideas!_

_Thank you, and bye bye._


	6. Lee

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Gaara remembered Lee all too well, he noted with the tiniest nagging of remorse.

Occasionally when he caught glimpse of the heinous green jumpsuit he felt a pang of guilt for nearly killing the boy,

He felt even guiltier every time the bug-eyed boy sprung up on him as if the whole ordeal from their distant past never happened.

"Gaara-kun," he chirped with that same 'nice-guy' pose and smile he gave nearly everyone. "How are you doing this beautiful, Kohoha morning?"

Gaara was silently delighted that the boy was able to forgive him for his evils; luckily the sand nin was able to repay his debt by saving Lee from that horrid ninja who used bones as his weapon.

Of course, Lee decided to return the favor by aiding his rescue from the Akatsuki's clutches.

Regardless of whatever unspoken entity was keeping tabs on their debts, Lee's easygoing attitude lifted the edges of Gaara's lips by a small fraction.

"It is pleasant here," he retorted civilly. Lee sunk into what looked like a fighting position, but instead of jumping the Kazekage, he punched his fist in the air and spun around.

"Yosh! Quite a day for the springtime youth to burst from our growing bodies! How much I would love to run three hundred laps around this Village, but I must inquire, Gaara-kun, do you happen to know the whereabouts of Sakura-san?"

The Kazekage mentioned that Sakura was at the Hospital, and that he was heading over there at that moment to observe the kunoichi's medical skills. Before Gaara could finish, Lee was gone in a cloud of dust, with a friendly 'thank you' hollered in the distance.

As he arrived at the hospital, he gazed upon a furiously blushing Sakura and an exceedingly loud Lee professing his undying loyalty towards the woman, praising her 'fresh and youthful appearance' with masterful theatrics. Gaara could not help but tense his jaw in curiosity.

Unsurprisingly enough, the same scene replayed for three consecutive days, each enactment more passionate than the last. Though it seemed she received the same treatment from Lee on a daily basis, the gentility of the strange ninja never failed to put an appreciative blush on Sakura's cheeks.

Gaara had knocked on Sakura's door the next day; it was her day off, so he would be able to sight see without having to pester Naruto. He was slightly dejected that he did not know any of the other shinobi enough to ask for their presence, but for now, Sakura's company would do. He knocked again at the small putter of her footsteps.

"Who is it," she asked with slight caution.

"Gaara," he said, feeling a bit awkward at conversing with her wooden door.

Immediately, the door creaked open and he was dragged inside by the kunoichi's strong-gripped hand. A cold sweat overwhelmed the young leader, as he was not used to being manhandled by females, as well he was not used to being eagerly lobbed around in their house. He unfortunately began feeling one of those uncomfortable stirring sensations in his stomach that Kankuro had warned him about as Sakura pressed her back hard against the closed door. She gave the aurburn-haired nin an innocent glance, and Gaara could have sworn his heart had stopped beating for a moment. It took ever ounce of his churning masculine fire to speak to her without stuttering.

"Woman, why did you barbarically toss me into your home?" He felt a bit of shame by referring to her so callously, but all her years with Sai desensitized his attitude and she just shrugged in response.

"I just didn't want Lee-san to see me around. He's kind of overwhelming during this time of year." She paused a beat, "well he's actually kind of overwhelming all year, " she confessed. He responded with a grunt that was faintly reminiscent of a certain Uchiha's, and proceeded to shuffle around her apartment.

Sakura politely let him study all of her belongings and shadowed him in case he got a sight of anything he shouldn't see—namely her silken black underwear that she had forgotten on the floor, to which she quickly swiped up before Gaara had a clear look at it. Once Gaara circled back around to her living room, he gazed upon the shelves of photos of her and her friends.

Nearly every ninja of Konoha could be pinpointed in the array of pictures; even his own brother and sister occupied a bit of space in between a picture of Kiba and Akamaru licking the side of Sakura's face and a picture of Hinata donning an extravagant kimono with a fan spread coyly over her and Sakura's chins as if they were flirting with the photographer.

He grazed over every picture, intent on uncovering their untold stories through the body language portrayed. Her collection was quite mesmerizing, if not offputting. Gaara was a bit perplexed that even Shino had a place on her mantle, holding a small butterfly out at the camera while other springtime bugs sat on his clothing like little buzzing jewels.

Yet she had no picture of him anywhere in her apartment, not even a gallant photo of him commanding his troops or something of the sort. Honestly, he felt a little snubbed. Sakura could sense his sudden upset aura and countered defensively—but a little teasingly—

"I need a picture of you, Gaara-san. A happy picture, like Lee-san's!"

His vision traced the picture of her and the taijutsu specialist.

Oddly enough, Lee's normal waterfall of 'springtime youth' was restrained as he had his arms wrapped innocently around Sakura's shoulders at some sort of annual festival. She did not look at all repulsed by him like she occasionally could, and held his wrist affectionately as she smiled brightly at the camera, mimicking Lee's thumbs-up gesture.

It was eerie how normal he looked: his eyebrows were as bushy as the tail of a raccoon-dog, and hair cut like the very bowl of chestnuts Temari kept in their home, but he was wearing a green yukata that was rather plain and not at all as gaudy as his jumpsuit. He was composed and relaxed, as if he was always within this distance of Sakura.

They looked like a couple. A real, loving couple. No theatrics or clenched fists of 'I-will-be-a-great-ninja-despite-my-setbacks' sort of passion.

So utterly ordinary.

Gaara looked over the emotion exuding from Lee's eyes, as he had nothing but pure, unabashed respect and devotion for the girl in the picture. It was a mixture of emotions that bolted the joints Gaara's body, how could that fool who didn't have a lick of ninjutsu or genjutsu talent still possess such power, power beyond that of a textbook ninja?

A power to smile like that? To make another human smile like that?

And just what did this girl have that could extract such emotion from the taijutsu specialist?

Gaara made a low humming sound in his throat,

He needed to take a picture with a certain rosette kunoichi.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_This one is sort of drabble-y, but I wanted to show the two sides of Lee's adoration for Sakura: his open, flamboyant 'love' for her, and his unspoken loyalty that could only be explained by a candid snapshot free of words._

_Well enough of my ramblings, stay tuned and please tell me what you think!  
_

_Thank you and good day!_


	7. Kakashi

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

"Gaara-san," he had half a mind to order her to drop the honorific but politely let her finish, "I'm afraid there's not going to be much going on today. Tsunade is busy with paperwork and doesn't want to start any new medical research with your physicians at the moment. All I was planning to do was train with Naruto for a while." Sakura bowed apologetically for wasting the Kage's time, but as she rose she was met with an absentminded stare.

"Mind if I come along?"

Sakura unintentionally recoiled her head, regretting it immediately. A small embarrassed smile took her lips, she didn't expect for the great Kazekage to be interested in a simple sparring between her and Naruto; but then again, if Naruto were involved, Gaara would probably be up for anything.

"Sure," she agreed with a smile.

They strolled through the woods to a training area that was quite familiar for Team Seven, and was greeted by two relaxed—more bored than anything—figures: Naruto and the Uchiha.

_The Uchiha_.

Gaara had to admit that he was perplexed by the ease in the shinobi's face: a traitor with—dare he say—sins greater than his own, just sitting casually next to a boy he had attempt to eradicate countless times. Not to mention when his onyx eyes lifted to scrutinize their arrival, he let his glower linger a bit longer on the pink haired medic, a woman he had once held a kunai to without hesitation. His deep-set black eyes met Gaara, and all at once, the Kage could feel the same uninvitingly thick air as he did with Neji.

His contemplation was interrupted by Naruto's deafening holler, the ringing once again festering in his ears.

"Sakura-chan, why'd you bring _Gaara_ along?!"

Gaara felt little offense as he noted the slight smirk in Naruto's expression, assuming his tone was more good-humored than upset. Regardless of intention, the kunoichi was at the blonde's side and immediately graced him with a notorious Sakura-Smack, forcing the boy to fall off his little perch. Naruto was grumbling and coddling the fresh bruise forming on the top of his head while Sasuke stepped forwards with his arms crossed,

"You're late," was all that he spoke. Sakura placed her hands on her hips and huffed at him,

"I'm not late, Kakashi-sensei isn't even here." Gaara watched with intrigue the team dynamics of the three, but before he could make anything more of the way Sasuke watched Sakura brush past him and help Naruto to his feet, the voice of a certain scarecrow breezed past his ear.

"I'm not your sensei anymore, Sakura," he strolled past the Kage with his trademark hand raised in greeting and eye squint. "I'm just Kakashi." He had his precious orange book stashed under his arm and settled into a relaxed stance as Naruto rolled his eyes. Without looking his way, Kakashi acknowledged Gaara, to which the sand nin responded with forced informality.

"So, Gaara, are you going to spar with us?" Gaara glanced sideways to find Naruto's arm draped around his neck, and shook his head quietly.

"I asked to accompany Sakura so that I may observe the training between you two. I have no intention of sparring myself."

"Too bad," Naruto mused, "that bastard over there probably would have liked a rematch." He thumbed a finger over at the brooding Uchiha, who took immediate notice of Naruto's endearing nickname and scowled.

"Shut up, dobe."

Their bickering fell on deaf ears as Gaara watched Kakashi help prepare Sakura for training.

The Kazekage found it a bit odd how Sakura's former sensei looked less authoritative than he had in the past. True he wasn't their teacher anymore, but he looked more like an old friend than the thirty-something jounin that he was. Gaara felt his tongue instinctively stick to the roof of his mouth as he helped Sakura buckle her kunai case to her hips. His hands were known for being quick and skilled, and yet he attached the belt to her with leisureliness, making no effort at all to rush his hands away from her.

He glanced back at the bickering duo, were they witnessing the same occurrence as he was? This was her former sensei after all. Her much older, former sensei that constantly had an erotic novel in his grasp. The copy nin's hands were immediately at his side as Naruto's impatient growl rumbled from Gaara's side.

"Bastard." Gaara assumed the curse was aimed at Sasuke, but could not help but feel as though Kakashi deserved a scolding of equal tone.

"Eh, you ready, Sakura-chan?" Said pink hair medic nodded with a twitching smile as she slipped her gloves on and let a flicker of mischief encompass her green eyes.

…

Damn, Sakura was scary.

To be clear, she uprooted an entire infant oak tree and chunked it at Naruto to eradicate half of his shadow clones. Even when tearing a tree five times her side she was able to clench her fist and hiss menacingly.

"SHANNARO!"

Gaara cryptically heard of the strength Sakura possessed, she was trained under Tsunade after all; and yet as every punch Sakura threw—splitting the earth to little fragments, shattering bark from trees, and nearly breaking every rib bone in Naruto's core—he was astounded by her power.

But he was even more bewildered by her sensei. Ex sensei.

They began with shuriken work against a line of trees. Kakashi seemed uninterested in Sasuke's effortless throws, and he caught Naruto's shuriken as the boy threatened for the copy nin to watch them properly and—in Naruto's words—"Quit reading that goddamn porno book." But as Sakura sunk into her stance, the Kazekage could have sworn Kakashi's eyes wavered from the scandalous passages of his novel to the determined pink medic. As quickly as his gaze was torn from his precious book, it returned once all of her shuriken stuck into the tree. She turned to her—seemingly indifferent—ex-sensei with her arms crossed triumphantly,

"How was that Kakashi-sensei?"

His eyes did not leave the page as he said passively,

"Hai, good good. Naruto, you need to aim a little better." Muttered curses and a small pink titter brought a small, humorous crease to his exposed eye.

After shuriken work, they began to spar. Naruto was nervously dodging Sakura's deadly—and soon to be legendary—punches. His demeanor, usually eager and confident, was sullied by an apprehension that was not often seen from the boy. Gaara inwardly smirked that his friend was having trouble putting up a fight against the kunoichi.

As if the gates of his mind were open, Kakashi spoke up,

"She's been working on her taijutsu."

His book was completely stowed away from sight, which was truly amazing according to the Uzumaki boy. Gaara suspected that their ex sensei had decided to obey his student's wishes and watch them more carefully as they trained.

And yet as his single, deceivingly bored eye trailed Sakura's sweating form as it slumped against a tree for rest, Gaara could tell that his naïve assumptions were not entirely correct.

He hopped down from his tree, unsurprisingly next to Sakura, and whipped out his battered "Icha Icha" book from its pocket prison.

"Job well done, everyone," he muttered blankly as his eyes grazed the pages. Naruto and Sasuke snorted, Sakura quietly giggled at the unified exasperation radiating from her male teammates.

"You old fart, you didn't even watch us," Naruto yelled with his hands extended at his sides.

"I haven't even sparred yet," Sasuke spat impatiently.

Gaara just waited on the sidelines patiently, a small grin climbing its way up his pale cheek. Kakashi just sighed and scratched his head with his free hand.

"I forgot, I have to go…" he started lazily, but Naruto was already retorting with hisses and curses, Sasuke silently brooding on the side.

Sakura recovered from her sparring and wiped a bit of sweat from her large forehead and pouted at the scarecrow.

"Kakashi-sensei, when am I going to get to fight you?"

Kakashi's eyebrow rose in amusement, possibly with a bit of deviousness as well, and smiled sheepishly under his mask. Naruto clamped his fists and took a fighting stance, obviously amped up at the mention of beating the lechery out of his former sensei.

"Yeah, Kakashi-sensei, when can we kick your ass?"

One small haughty laugh that sounded more like an exhale escaped the copy nin's covered mouth as he placed a large hand on Sakura's head and brought his body near the girl, probably closer than a thirty-something man should have. He ruffled her dirty pinky tresses and said tonelessly,

"We should get lunch." Sakura's eyebrow twitched that he completely disregarded their question, but cocked her head in line with her rolling eyes—which only allowed Kakashi's static hand to muss up her hair even more. A throaty cough erupted from Sakura's side as Sasuke had his lips thinned at the grey-haired man before him, a small bit of warning in the Uchiha's eyes.

Gaara felt most uncomfortable as Kakashi met his gaze equally with a raised eyebrow, then smiled a little smugly. His hand dropped carelessly from her head, and purposefully skimmed her shoulder when returning to his side.

Gaara stayed on Naruto's right as they waltzed towards Ichiraku's for a well-deserved bowl of ramen, with Kakashi and Sasuke up ahead, standing on opposite sides of Sakura.

Somehow, Gaara could tell that the repeated hand brushings Sakura received from either male was not entirely accidental.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Hmmm a little conflict, I see._

_Hope you like, have a good day!_


	8. Shino and Choji

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Shino, Choji and Gaara all shared a similar characteristic: they were all unashamedly blunt.

Shino immediately called out Kiba's short-lived affection for Hinata when they were still genins, giving a full three-minute explanation complete with evidence from previous missions and practices, then proceeded to elucidate how his crush would last but a year or so until Kiba's maturing hormones would reach out for a different mate.

Kiba was not happy, to say the least at his buggy teammate.

Choji was the one who first openly pointed out Shikamaru's almost imperceptible attraction towards their fellow teammate, in front of the entity that was the Konoha 11 no less. He was shoving a large serving of pork down his gullet as he casually mentioned,

"Yeah, it all happened when Ino-chan got breasts. After that, Shikamaru-kun got all uppity and professional around her."

All the Nara did was deny it with a simple 'troublesome' until a year later when he finally fessed up to a fuming Ino in effort to avoid further confrontation.

So since Gaara was just as straightforward, he approached the two at an outdoors restaurant, requesting politely a seat next to them. They shrugged unconcernedly and motioned for him to sit as they prodded at the appetizers before them. Not one to waste time, Gaara shifted his jade stare from the squints of Choji to the dark abyss of Shino's glasses and asked in his usual business-type manner.

"You two like Sakura as well, don't you?"

They continued to eat as if they didn't hear him, but answered when their rumbling bellies were satisfied.

"She's pretty," Choji stated.

"My bugs are lured by her hair. Why, you ask? Because it is pink like flowers and smells of fruit," Shino murmured in his off way of speaking.

Gaara disregarded his peculiar syntax and nodded with his arms laced against his chest.

"I see."

"Everyone likes Sakura-chan," Choji affirmed while picking a bit of meat from his teeth.

Gaara nodded wordlessly once again: so at least he was not the only one who realized the girl's strange, eye-catching qualities. The way nearly every warm male body in Konoha was allured by her was so mystifying it could have been mistaken for a forbidden jutsu of some sort. Even the shinobi six feet under probably would have found her attractive.

As if gifted with the ability to read minds, Choji piped up again.

"Shino-kun and I have this theory that even the dead would most likely fall in love with Sakura-chan."

"Like Sasuke-san's brother, because he is his older sibling and would probably share similar feelings for Sakura-san," Shino said evenly.

"Or that red-headed doll master that she killed."

Gaara unconsciously stiffened at the mention of Akasuna no Sasori, completely forgetting Kakuro's amazement at Sakura's feat against the puppet.

Dammit, did Kankuro like her too?

"What about you, Kazekage-sama?"

The sand nin reflexively scratched at his head where the kanji 'love' was imprinted. He traced the strokes before running a sand-dried hand through his hair, a brief flash of the green-eyed kunoichi crossing his mind. The two shinobi before him were indifferent to whether he answered or not, but Shino did tighten his fists before rubbing the pad of his thumb over his fingernails.

"Have you seen Sasuke-san when he's around her? Why, you ask? Because, his mannerisms are the first bout of sentimentality I've seen from him since his academy days."

Gaara feigned interest; he _had_ seen the Uchiha become an ugly green monster when his lecherous ex-sensei cuddled up next to the medic, but not much else to classify as raw emotion. Then again, could Gaara really be the one to judge another's display of emotion?

"From what I've gathered, he's a bit protective of her."

"A _bit_," Choji stressed without taking an eye off his entrée. Shino grunted as he leaned his elbows on the table.

"Challenge Sakura-san to a spar, and try to intentionally harm her. Why? Just see how far you last against her before the Uchiha bursts from the shadows and holds a kunai to your neck."

"That's what happened to Shino-kun," Choji interjected. After a large bite of rice, he continued,

"Or take her out on a date. Sasuke-kun usually follows her then sets her suitor on fire if he tries to touch her."

"Kiba-san," Shino murmured with little need for explanation.

Gaara raised an invisible eyebrow,

In regards to the Uchiha, it seemed the entire male population of Konoha had to decide whether they preferred being burned alive or decapitated.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Sorry Shino and Choji don't each have their own chapter, but I like this dynamic for this situation, it sort of sets up the next arc._

_And yes, there shall be a next "arc" per se._

_I have dubbed it "The Kissing Arc," if that gives a little insight for you. It's underway right now, so updates might be a little later than usual._

_Night!_


	9. Sasuke

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Gaara didn't expect it.

He was warned of it, but he did not expect it.

Thus, explaining his surprised expression as he held Sakura tight against his frame within the confines of his protective sand orb. Lightly, he could feel the Uchiha's angry fists slamming violently against his barrier, sending pulsations and bits of stray salt down on their heads. It most likely would not be long before he tried to shove a Chidori into his back or set his sand on fire.

But he had Sakura in his grasp; surely his chances of _not_ being seared or electrocuted were increased slightly. He looked down to see her tomato-red face cupped in her hands as she profusely apologized for their current situation. He disregarded her remorse-dripping voice and listened as a string of muted curses could be heard from Sasuke's spiteful mouth.

"You, goddamned bastard, get your hands off of her!"

Gaara had the smallest ghost of a smirk on his face; it all started out so innocently.

…

They had just spent an arduous day at the hospital for what seemed like years of painstaking problem solving to cultivate more plants in Suna soil while at the same time trying to figure out how to better educate their medical ninjas without being a burden to Konoha. Not to mention, the medics and several of his council members were in a tizzy at the expected cost of everything.

They. Were. Exhausted.

Sakura stretched over the body of a couch in the waiting room up front, unable to move her legs any farther. Gaara sat adjacent to her with his head whipped back over the edge of a less-than-comfortable chair. He quietly groaned and held his thumping, throbbing head.

"If I had any more chakra left, I would heal that for you." Sakura's sleepy voice faltered halfway through as she pointed to the pained expression on the young Kazekage's face. He sighed, not at all offended by Sakura's lack of assistance. As a small calm rifted between them, Sakura's stomach roared like a vicious forest animal. Her face burned ten shades of red as she curled up on the couch and shoved her face into her knees, her back to Gaara. He could only chuckle quietly, as his own stomach was gnawing for something substantial.

Strange how his chat with Shino and Choji unexpectedly entered his mind. He sat up with a start.

"Sakura, would you like to go out for dinner?" A midnight snack would have been a better term for it.

Said medic turned even brighter at his lack of honorific, but could not bring herself to do the same.

"So long as you don't mind being seen with me, Gaara-san!" She sniffed her shoulder as a powerful odor of medical cream and illness wafted from her body to Gaara, though he was not much better off. He rolled his eyes and offered to help Sakura off the couch, both groaning miserably as their muscles ached from their meticulous day.

It was dark, obviously, for they were busy locked up in the hospital from about five that morning to eleven at night. As his remaining days were dwindling down, he felt it rather easy to converse with Sakura: though if seen together by an outsider, they were not vocal enough to portray a discernable friendship. Regardless, he would miss his stay in Konoha; perhaps he could get a small apartment in the area for vacation, even his siblings might appreciate such housing quarters as well.

He felt a small smile tug at his mouth at the thought of having ties other than politically with Konoha. He would be forever rooted in the Village by a small, simple apartment, and perhaps his goal at creating friendships would thrive. Unfortunately he did not notice that his head was facing Sakura while deep in contemplation; once he came to, he found that his twitching lips had stunned her. Her face was flushing for the umpteenth time that day, but Gaara felt more at ease at it than anything.

He assumed that he should apologize for instigating her reaction, but was halted when she beamed back and laughed.

"We should go home now. It's late and we have another long day tomorrow!"

She reached a few bills out of her purse and placed them on the table, quickly grabbing Gaara's hand and pulling him away before he could protest. No matter, he would just slip a few extra handfuls of money in her purse or send her an immaculate array of desert flowers once he returned to Suna. He uttered a quiet 'thank you' before striding into a composed pace beside her. The combination of dim moonlight and cheap street lanterns did little for her healthy, pink skin, but the effortless turn in her lips despite her exhaustion nearly shut down Gaara's functioning nervous system.

"Thanks for getting dinner with me, sometimes its lonely by myself when I have late nights like this."

Gaara paused to even his voice as he tried to mask his disapproval, she was a young adult, after all, and in no need of him admonishing her.

"You stay out this late, alone?"

She tucked a bit of hair out of her face and chuckled nervously,

"Usually it only happens about once a month, but lately it has been almost twice or three times a week now."

Gaara inhaled sharply through his nose, catching a whiff of a familiar chakra nearby—though his mind had completely abandoned his confrontation with Choji and Shino and had been replaced with the image of a sullen Sakura all alone eating cheap noodles.

He didn't like that one bit.

"Why don't you ask Naruto to escort you home, or…" he didn't finish his sentence, not because he was averse to mentioning the Uchiha, but simply because his name momentarily slipped his mind. Sakura gave a smile tinged with sadness, but brightened back up.

"Sasuke," oh, so she was referring to the Uchiha without the frilly 'kun' addition to his name now, "came and ate with me once, and told me not to come out this late again. I told him it doesn't usually happen, and not to worry. I don't want to make it a habit for him, I don't want to be a burden." She let the clipping of her shoes fill in the awkward beat and continued,

"That was a while ago though. It was when we had some questionable people snooping near Konoha, so I guess he was just concerned for everyone's safety."

Gaara fought the urge to inform her that it was not _everyone's_ safety Sasuke was concerned with. As they neared Sakura's apartment, a small light bulb glowed in his head, despite his face remaining absolutely frozen.

"I shall escort you to dinner until I go back to Suna."

Who better than to ask the insomniac when you needed someone at the ungodly hour they were currently awake at?

She gave him one of the kindest smiles she could muster and chirped happily,

"I would enjoy that, Gaara-san!"

For the first time ever, a color distantly the shade of his hair rose to his face as she looked uncannily like a mother appeasing a child—yet she was able to make her disheveled hair and bagged eyes look attractive under the terrible night lighting. All at once Gaara's face stiffened to one of earnestness as he stopped and faced her. She stopped and spun on her heel to meet his gaze.

He took a step closer and was relived when she didn't even flinch at his approach. He took another until their cloaks threatened to graze the other.

"Gaara," he began. "Just Gaara."

"Gaara," she repeated with a tired grin. He held his breath as he spoke once again in presence of the—almost empty—night.

"May I kiss you?"

From the background, a small twig snapped.

Her previously sluggish demeanor was replaced with something keen to downright embarrassment. Did Subaku no Gaara, the great Kazekage of Suna seriously just request a kiss goodnight? To be quite honest, Sakura was astonished that Gaara even knew what a kiss was. Her cheeks were darker than he had ever seen them, but with agile grace she collected herself and held her arms a little stiffly at her side.

"Sure, Gaara!"

Inwardly, Sakura wanted to see if the ever-present rings around his eyes were truly still from insomnia or if he just borrowed a bit of his sibling's makeup in order to keep up his accustomed, somnolent appearance.

She closed her eyes and stretched her neck the tiniest bit, leaving room for him to finish the action. The sand nin closed his own eyes and leaned forwards, a little unsure of his aim in the double layer of darkness. He was nearly relieved when the blood-curling snarl erupted from the shadows as, whom else, but Uchiha Sasuke tore from his branch and was aiming a murderous kunai at his back.

Gaara instantly swirled his sand around the two of them and formed a large sphere similar to the one from the chunin exams. His arm was clutched tight around her shoulders as his other strained to keep Sasuke from beating through his barrier.

He was rather intrigued by the reaction, how Sasuke was spitting and kicking the sand, ordering tersely for the sand nin to—"Get your dirty, sand claws off my teammate," was how the Uchiha chose to word it.

But it was one' o'clock in the goddamned morning, and a certain little rosette nin was a trifle bit cranky. Needless to say:

Sakura was at her limit.

Her sting had been cut.

Her fuse lit.

She growled.

Gaara right then felt less safe with the fuming kunoichi in his arms than he did facing a thousand of Sasuke's Chidoris. Sakura politely removed Gaara's arm from around her shoulders and she placed her hands over the Kage's ears and let a rumbling yell escape her throat,

"UCHIHA SASUKE!"

The incessant thrashing of sand had abruptly ceased.

"If you value the revival of your clan, you will stop this right now and let the both of us go home. _Unharmed_," she stressed the last word aggressively.

A small 'hn' could be heard from the outside as the violent aura Sasuke had initially possessed dwindled into one of reluctant compliance. When the curtains of sand fell around their ankles and slithered back into Gaara's gourd they could see fury still engraved across the boy's face as his arms were woven and his gaze on a line of trees. When he turned to them his Sharingan was activated, though by Sakura's increasing volume of growl it was slowly blinked away to his normal onyx orbs. He quickly flashed at Sakura's side and pulled her from the Kazekage and turned her towards her house.

"You should go," was all that he offered the sand nin. Gaara mused at the lack of possession he himself felt as Sakura was literally ripped from his arms; he felt more intrigued that the Uchiha was gripping Sakura's cloaked shoulders exceptionally tight, his nose hovering over the crown of her pink head. She swatted off his hands with a murky blush and turned to skip to the Kage's side to bless him with a quick and chaste peck to the cheek.

Sasuke sputtered and hissed a loud, "Sakura!" as she swiftly escaped his grasp and fled into her apartment, closing the door with a sold 'thump' behind her. Sasuke grumbled and knocked at her door impatiently as he repeated her name a few times over in attempt to scold her.

"What did I tell you about going out this late?"

"You shouldn't be straining yourself so much."

"Make Ino or someone look after Gaara, you need a day of rest."

"SAKURA."

Sasuke thinned his lips until they were almost consumed by his teeth; his persistent nagging was about to materialize into a breakneck kick to her door if she didn't respond.

As if the Gods had took mercy on him and answered his requests, Sakura's luminous, pink head shot out from the entrance and placed a humorously exaggerated smack of a kiss to where his lips _would_ have been if he wasn't currently chewing them to pieces. His head recoiled in shock by her actions, her playful emerald gaze replaced by her blank door as it was brutishly slammed back in his face. He almost went crossed-eyes staring at the large, unyielding door, completely dumbfounded.

Wordlessly, he shook his head and sent a murderous glower towards the Kazekage as he fled off into the trees.

Gaara traced the area around Sakura's kiss as if he were afraid to touch the actual impact of where her lips had met his skin.

Somewhere deep within the woods on the way to his manor, Sasuke was caressing his face in a nearly identical manner.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_This is not the kissing arc, but we are getting close. This is the last 'plot story,' the next few chapters will kind of be fillers and set up for the next arc._

_All in good time!_

_Please review, I hope you like it!_


	10. A New Beginning

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

He hated to admit it, but the time to return to Suna had crept upon him. Sure, he would have loved to stay in Konoha with the anticipation of budding friendships, but he surely could not leave all of his Kazekage duties to Temari and Kankuro, it would have been unfair to his siblings to suddenly have so much responsibility dumped on them.

So there he stood, at the gate with his sand medics, packed and ready to go. Lady Tsunade and Sakura were there to bid him farewell, Naruto belatedly arrived to do the same, laughing and cursing along the way.

"Don't be a stranger, Gaara-bastard! Visit Konoha again when you can and next time, _we'll_ spar, dattebayo!"

His grin was as wide and mischievous as the Kazekage could remember; in response, he silently smirked and held out his hand to shake the Kyuubi's.

…

_Days Later..._

Sakura waltzed up to her house, sighing as another stressful day at the hospital was meeting its end as soon as her head hit her bed's pillows, but paused at the shadowed object that occupied her doormat. She skillfully bent down with an audible creak in her knees, fingering the strange combination of smooth and prickly surfaces that adorned her 'gift.' It took a moment for her to realize who in fact sent her a rather large vase of desert flowers. She took the small tag attached to the side and read it as she entered her house,

_I wish to return to Konoha as soon as possible for a visit. _

_Perhaps I may escort you to dinner without your teammate trying to electrocute me._

_Regardless, I as well as Suna thank you for aiding our medical research._

_-Gaara. _

Sakura stifled a giggle as she set the desert flowers on her dining room table; even on paper, Gaara was halting and gauche. She could almost hear the rumbling of his throat as he clumsily wrote the note with obvious hesitation, grasping for words that normally went unspoken for the Kazekage. She glanced at her shelf of candid memories and pushed a picture of Sasuke clad in his flak jacket shortly after he was accepted as a chunin closer to a picture of a humbled Neji leaning on crutches, leaving a wide-open space in anticipation for a certain picture with a very certain Kazekage.

...

Sasuke walked into her house, glancing to see if anything was out of the ordinary—though he shouldn't at all be familiar with what was ordinary and what was not within the confines of her private home.

His onyx irises were drawn to the atypical hole in her assortment of photos. A flash of annoyance crinkled the bridge of his nose.

"That damn Hyuuga." Sasuke grunted and shifted his picture away from Neji's and transferred it next to the most recent picture of a new Team Seven complete with Yamato and Sai. Subtly he nudged the Hyuuga's picture closer to the edge, not at all at fault if the picture so happened to fall off her shelf.

"Sakura," he called calmly while strolling through her hallways. He was greeted with a voice, though it was not the pinkette's.

"Oi, bastard, what do you want?"

Naruto's gruff voice was muffled by the toothbrush in his mouth, to which Sasuke immediately cringed:

One: why was Naruto in her apartment?

And two: was that _her_ toothbrush he was currently using to scrub that filthy mouth of his?

Sasuke immediately voiced his thoughts,

"Are you using her toothbrush?"

Naruto scoffed, indirectly choking on the lather of his toothpaste.

"No, idiot. Sakura lets me keeps some stuff here." He returned to the bathroom and spat, gargling water shortly after. Sasuke grimaced and leaned against Sakura's walls in anticipation for the jinchuuriki to finish.

"She lets you keep some of your toiletries here?"

Naruto grinned at his own reflection in the mirror, he was fully aware the Uchiha was doing his best to sound impassive, albeit doing a piss poor job at it. He stuck his little blonde head out of the bathroom at the boy in the hall; it was quite humorous to note that the cold, damp hallway suited Sasuke's demeanor well, the glitter of his pale skin the only indication of his separation from the shadows.

"Oi bastard," Naruto chuckled at the annoyed crinkle in Sasuke's brow, "she keeps some ramen here for me, and some of my clothes. Sometimes after missions or training she lets me sleep over." Sasuke could have very well punched down the foundation of Sakura's apartment if he didn't posses masterful control over his emotions—well almost masterful. It took a moment for Sasuke to realize that he was growling at Naruto, which only prodded harder fits of laughter from him.

"I bunk on the _couch_, idiot. Wipe that pissy look off your face." He turned the bathroom light off and sauntered for her kitchen, a still-fuming Uchiha following him.

"How long has this arrangement been going on?"

Naruto was almost surprised that Sasuke was capable of this tone, though he was unsure of the name of the particular emotion he radiated. Naruto shrugged and took his kunai belt from the kitchen, and Sasuke could have nearly slapped himself for being so careless in disregarding the pungent odor of chakra that lay so plainly on Sakura's counter.

"Eh, she gave me a key a while ago, before that I would just ask to stay over occasionally, though she usually leaves her door unlocked. So I just come an go as I please, and make sure to clean up, or else she gets angry."

Sasuke stiffened and crossed his arms while resting his lower back against her counter,

"She leaves her door unlocked?" Sasuke seemed to chastise both Naruto and Sakura with his tone, to which his blonde friend quickly held his palms up in defense.

"Oi, bastard, I'm not happy about it either! I lock the door when I leave, but then she just keeps leaving it open."

Sasuke pinched between his eyes as if he were trying to summon his sanity out in front of him.

"So annoying," he groaned reflexively. In attempt to tame his tensed brow, he raised his chin to Naruto and spoke with feigned indifference.

"So she gave you a key," it was neither a statement nor question, it was a muddled grey assortment of words, but Naruto—being the volatile rival-friend of Uchiha Sasuke for most of his life—knew better.

_Why didn't she give me a key?_

"You know damn well why she hasn't given you one yet."

Sasuke huffed and shot the boy a look of ephemeral anger, displeased by the sheer fact that he was right.

He may not have been welcome back to Konoha with an extravagant party and open arms, but over time the Village became accustomed to his presence once again. It may not have been completely like old times, but he was not longer the victim of shaming glares or harsh insults from unassuming onlookers.

But Sakura was an enigma that rattled his brain to no end.

Sure, she put up a skilled front that initially led Sasuke to believe that he was forgiven: she healed his wounds without question, she spoke to him with the same kindness she did everyone else, and she never hesitated to attend his sparring matches with Naruto, or his chunin exam, even at his graduation ceremony she was there.

But there was an obvious air that her faith in him was not entirely mended. He seemed to gain almost ninety percent of the trust he once so hardheartedly tossed away for revenge, but the lingering ten percent was something that bothered the young male far beyond any previous annoyance.

Her key, for one. Naruto was so graciously blessed with a key to her apartment, even if she did leave her door unlocked—which was a scolding he would have to stow for another day.

As well as missions. She never went on a single mission with him, though her cunningness and brutish strength would easily compliment his stealthy attacks and sharp senses. She never even so much attended him on a C-ranked mission when he purposefully requested her: it was a simple, one day escort mission paired with only him, but she merely replied with a polite 'No,' and accepted a B-ranked mission with Kiba instead.

It was a sobering experience to be dismissed for the Inuzuka, and even when she was low on pay for her rent, she picked up extra shifts at the hospital instead of accompanying him on graciously paying jobs.

Though she laughed and bantered with him in that easygoing manner Sakura now emanated, the little things she no longer trusted him with bothered him to no end.

But damned it, he was an Uchiha and even if his face was pressed to the fiery pits of hell he would never admit that he…

Was jealous.

.

Regretful.

.

Lonely.

Damned it, there had better be more dignified words in the dictionary to describe the things that he was feeling. The pitiful vocabulary he was using at the moment was not at all the manly demeanor an Uchiha should retain. Sasuke was immediately brought back to earth by Naruto's forced coughing. The jinchuuriki had an atypical softened glow in his blue eyes as he recognized every flicker of emotion that tainted Sasuke's chakra. With that little bit of silent understanding, he huffed and rolled his eyes at the brooding ninja in front of him.

"Bastard, what are you doing here anyway?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and responded in an equally impolite manner,

"I want to go on a mission, Dobe."

Naruto slid over to Sakura's couch and stretched out lazily across the surface, the muscles hidden under Sasuke's shirt tensing that the overwhelming ramen odor from his hideous orange jumpsuit was probably polluting her furniture.

"And I'm guessing you wanted to ask Sakura-chan, which is why you broke into her house. Man, criminal habits die hard, don't they?"

Sasuke scoffed and had half a mind to flip that couch over on Naruto.

"This coming from the dobe who probably spends his free time sifting through Sakura's wardrobe." Naruto immediately shot up and held a stern finger to Sasuke's face,

"That was one time! And I had to pay for all the damage after she blew out the back half of this place punching me through a wall!"

Sasuke used ever bit of his ego to mask the blatant amusement he felt that Naruto was caught snooping through Sakura's delicates. His expression immediately hardened to redirect their conversation back to his request for a mission.

"I want to go one a mission with Sakura."

Naruto settled back on the couch and scratched his stomach; "You haven't gone on any missions with her yet?" He knew Sakura frequently turned down the Uchiha for missions, but in a sick, twisted sense of pleasure, he wanted to hear it from the bastard himself.

"She won't go with me," he ground out through gritted teeth, obviously mindful of the smirk creeping up Naruto's face.

"Okay, bastard, I'll make a deal with you," his voice was so slathered in smugness that it puckered up Sasuke's face like an extra-sour lemon, "We'll have a nice Team Seven reunion; Sai and I will attend, and then there is no way she can back out. We'll make it a multi-day mission, and then that sissy artist jerk and I will give you two some _alone_ time."

Sasuke answered Naruto's crudely wiggling eyebrows with his ever-graceful fist.

"Dobe…" His voice trained off, and Naruto could sense that his friendly rival was actually contemplating his idea.

"Are there any multi-day missions available right now?"

Naruto grinned.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_I now present: The Kissing Arc. _

_Sorry if Sasuke seems OOC, please tell me if anyone is that way, I do not want to fail in capturing the essence of these characters,_

_thank you and good day!_


	11. Team Seven, Reunited

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

"You want to 'reunite' Team Seven for this B-Rank mission?"

"Sure, baa-chan. Sasuke's been doing only solo-missions, so maybe a little Team Seven bonding can get him back into the groove with working with other shinobis again, dattebayo." Naruto was so at ease, that it brought a frustrated wrinkled to Tsunade's forehead. She didn't like his underlying intentions whenever he got that gleam in his eye. She grazed over Sai, who was smiling per usual, Sakura, who was a little aghast at the whole ordeal, and Sasuke, who seemed more interested in the window behind her.

"Fine," she sighed, "You will have to travel to the Land of the Wind. There is a small group of rogue shinobi that are causing major trouble for town of civilians. They don't seem to be linked to our Suna allies, so there is no need to hesitate in their assassination."

"Why isn't the Kazekage taking care of it himself?"

"The trouble is in the grey areas between Sunagakure and Amegakure, and since we border them as well, the Kazekage thought it would be wise for both nations to send shinobi in case they decided to spread their gang over on our lands. This way we ensure that they are properly disposed of, and will not cause harm to either nation."

The group nodded as Tsunade handed them their assigned scrolls.

"They're likely to be prowling around in the borders of both nations, so you must be wary at all times."

"Why isn't this an A-ranked mission if it involves two, maybe three nations," Sai inquired harmlessly.

"Because, they are a relatively weak force that targets only small civilian cities, rather than Hidden Shinobi Villages. Most of it seems to be petty thievery, but I want them assassinated before they can gain any more ground."

Tsunade grazed over Sakura's form: shoulders bent slightly out of line, hip cocked in concentration, eyes growing brighter with each passing line. A dim light surfaced under the depths of Tsunade's blonde mane, a small twitching tingling her fingers.

"Sakura," she began. An inkling of a smile was dawning on her face as she formulated the perfect test for Sakura's strength, a back-to-back mission that would surely set her apart from the three males around her.

"I wish for you—when the gang is successfully assassinated—to continue traveling to Suna to check on their medical advancements. If they need any assistance, I wish for you to stay and do what is needed for them." Knowing the heavy weight of Nation alliance that would arise from her seemingly innocuous gesture, Sakura nodded expectantly.

"Hai, shishou!"

Her three male counterparts however, had the remains of their melted faces pooled across the floor.

"Baa-chan?! You're giving us a double mission?!"

"No," she said pointedly, "I'm giving _Sakura_ a double mission. When you assassinate the gang, she will travel to Suna while you three come back to Konoha to report your success. Sakura is the only one with knowledge of their medical activities, so your presence would be entirely useless. As well, I will not spend the extra money to house all four of you when Sakura is the only one needed."

_Only one needed…_

That little string of words sent a deafening chime of euphoria through Sakura's body that would forever remain unmatched.

She was needed, she was useful.

However, her smile was sadly damped when Sasuke stepped forwards and barked,

"She should have at least one of us escort her-"

"There will be sand ninjas in the perimeter, so they can take her back to Suna if they so please," Tsunade snapped, successfully cutting off the raven-haired boy. "I believe in Sakura's abilities. I'm surprised you don't, Uchiha after witnessing the fruits of my training out there on the front line during the war."

That effectively shut Sasuke up.

By the purple diamond that lay on Sakura's wide forehead, he admittedly could no longer question Sakura's strength, but that didn't mean he didn't have other reason to worry.

Sure she was strong, but she…

"No. I believe in her," Sasuke mumbled through the slits of his teeth. His lingering tone went unnoticed by the Hokage, but not by Naruto.

_But she's still my teammate. _

_My friend._

"Good, you will depart three days from now an hour before dawn. I will give notice to the Kazekage of your expected arrival, Sakura, after the first part of your mission is complete. You are all dismissed."

…

"So, Sasuke-bastard. I assume you won't take this whole Sakura-solo mission thing so lightly, will you?" Naruto chided ahead of Sai and Sakura, a little too loudly for his tastes.

"Shut up, dobe," Sasuke answered with a forceful jab at his side. However, Sakura's imposing voice instantly tore his elbow from the blonde nin.

"Uchiha Sasuke!"

Was it so wrong to admit that Sasuke found Sakura's dark tone…

Fascinating?

"Do not elbow, Naruto. I still need to fix that wound in his side."

Naruto turned around and gave her a cheeky grin, "Don't worry Sakura-chan, I'm all right, but this big baby right here is throwing a fit becau-" Sasuke skillfully silenced him by kicking him into a line of nearby bushes, earning a loud, exasperated groan from their resident medic nin.

"So, Ugly," Sai murmured idly.

"Nani, Sai?"

"I couldn't help but notice that array of desert flowers on your dining room table. I assume they are from the Kazekage?"

Sakura's face turned a girlish shade of pink as Naruto sprung from the bushes and materialized next to her like a tacky pop-up toy.

"NANI, Sakura-chan? Gaara-bastard gave you flowers?"

Sasuke called over his shoulder carelessly, though it would have been in his best interests if he kept his comments to himself.

"Idiot, how could you not see those flowers on her table?"

Sasuke immediately recognized his mistake, for he never actually informed Sakura that he was snooping through her house in search for her. Struggling to maintain his composure his eyes betrayed him by widening ever so slightly. Sakura's lips were nearly be gnawed off as she fought back a slew of very unlady-like words.

"What. Were. You Doing. In. My. House?"

"I was-"

"How the hell did you get in?"

Sasuke felt a wave of aggravation grasp his features. Who the hell was she to ask such a question with her blantant display of carelessness?

"I entered through a window. But apparently, you leave your door unlocked, care to explain how that is appropriate kunoichi behavior?"

"Sometimes I forget my keys," Sai interjected casually.

Sasuke could have very well gone into cardiac arrest right then and there.

That goddamned socially inept Sasuke-replacement artist nin had a key too.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Sorry for the long update, _

_school is in session, _

_Okay, I shouldn't make excuses,_

_anyway, update, yay!_

_Rates and reviews, please!_


	12. A Story

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

With blatant disregard of what Tsunade had ordered from them, there stood Naruto, Sai, and Sasuke behind a vehemently shaking Sakura. Several sand nins present unconsciously backed up against the wall to avoid her violent flares of chakra, even Gaara seemed off put by her anger: though he was far more intrigued by what caused it.

But judging by the large, throbbing vein protruding out of her exponentially large forehead, he gauged that it was probably not the best topic to press at the moment, so he settled for a safer subject.

"This is an unexpected visit."

Though his voice was not in any way offensive, it took less that three seconds for Sakura's boiling pot of anger to simmer down to a flush of embarrassment. Quicker than her sudden mood change, she stumbled out with a staggered explanation.

"Hai, Kazekage-sama, I apologize. Hokage-sama asked _me_ to continue traveling to Suna after our border mission was completed; I guess she didn't think it necessary to send a forewarning. We-"

"Gaara-bastard!"

The other sand ninjas froze at the sheer audacity that had dripped from the kyuubi jinchuuriki's mouth.

"Don't tell me you don't enjoy our company, dattebayo!"

The fluttering heartbeats of Gaara's associates very well could have detonated, but by the soft upturn of their leader's lips, they assumed that they would not be spending their afternoon cleaning the floor of sand and blood. Gaara cleared his throat in motion for the other sand ninjas to leave, to which they efficiently slipped through the door.

Following their exit, Sakura proceeded to smack Naruto upside the head, vein returning once more with vigorous passion. Naruto could only grin and shrink away from her curled fist.

Gaara's baritone once again snapped Sakura from her aggravation.

"Your mission along our borders was a success then?"

"Hai," she said with a smile, "I'm here to check up on the medical advancements, and provide my help where help is needed."

Gaara nodded and grazed his eyes over her teammates as if to ask, 'and the rest of you?' In no need of words—for Sakura's chiding glare provided sufficient explanation—Gaara sifted through a few layers of papers and scrolls before speaking.

"I trust that one of you should return to Konoha and relay the details of your mission," his eyes drifted towards Sai.

"I, too, would like to hear the details of the mission for our records," his eyes drifted towards Naruto.

With the lone Uchiha left without a designated task, Gaara had half a mind just to send him along with Sai, though by the tension in his posture and the knowing Sharingan that lay below his stern, obsidian glower, Gaara could muster that Sasuke was not going anywhere.

Sakura bowed respectfully and made her leave for the hospital, though not without a certain raven-haired Uchiha following behind her, much to Sakura's displeasure. He responded to her backwards glare with a forceful huff.

All in all, it was rather beguiling that Sakura could ever be the one returning Sasuke's accustomed look of disdain—on _Sasuke_ himself no less.

Composed, yet poised with underlying rigidity, Gaara's jade eyes followed the two out the door before settling on Naruto. He grinned wildly, already making himself comfortable on the chair in front of the young leader, feet garishly propped up on his desk.

"You don't really care about the mission, do you, dattebayo?"

…

With the door promptly shut with nary a teammate or sand nin within earshot, Gaara faintly slouched in his seat: a true flamboyant display of relaxation for the Kazekage within his own quarters.

"Naruto," Gaara began with his expression void of anything, "Sakura is a very likeable person."

To anyone but Naruto, his choice of tone portrayed a factual statement, though with Naruto's expert 'emotionally-stunted bastard decoding skills,' he was able to answer the boy with a competent smirk.

_I like Sakura._

Gaara spoke again, this time crossing his arms,

"Does she still harbor feelings for the Uchiha?"

_Can I compete with that arrogant, Chicken-Ass, bastard Uchiha Sasuke?_

Granted, Naruto's terminology was drastically different from Gaara's but the message was portrayed all the same.

With a grin that crinkled the whisker scars on his face, Naruto craned his neck towards the young man in front of him.

"Want to hear a story, Gaara?"

…

If Gaara had eyebrows, they would be auburn and cocked in a manner of light irritation towards the blonde haired jinchuuriki.

Really, he now saw why Sakura was so generous with her violent displays towards him.

"Alright, Kage-bastard."

Naruto was very lucky that he was not encased in an extravagant sand coffin with a malicious Gaara standing triumphantly over his body, though his condescending tone was making it quite difficult for the Kazekage.

"I'm going to tell you how each guy from Konoha got a kiss from Sakura," he said with a patronizing air.

Gaara's rimmed eyes widened the finest fraction, _every_ guy? Naruto, gifted with the talent of reading minds apparently, interrupted the slight twitch in his face.

"She was just as surprised as you are. She was even more surprised when Sasuke-bastard torched every single one of them, dattebayo." Naruto paused as a small thought punctured his mind, "Well, he torched all but one."

Sasuke set them on fire?

Wait, all but one?

Not in need of spoken words, Naruto answered the Kazekage's subliminal question.

"That story is best saved for last," he said with a sideways smirk.

Settling into a comfortable position in his chair, Naruto crossed his arms and hummed low in his throat as if contemplating the chronological flow of his story. Gaara mirrored the boy and slumped casually in his Kage throne. A snap of Naruto's fingers echoed against the stark sand walls around him, followed by a small chuckle.

"I'll guess we'll start with her first kiss."

Unconsciously, Gaara leaned forwards in his chair.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Sorry that I didn't write what happened in the mission, but we'll actually get to that later!_

_Much later._

_So as a crack chapter(s) at the end of the story, I was thinking of doing something for Sasori and Itachi, dead or alive in regards to Sakura. Tell me what you think!_

_Thanks and good day/night!_


	13. Naruto Reprise

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

He had finally done it.

His heaviest promise, fulfilled.

He brought that no good, traitor-bastard back.

He brought his friend back.

They were both withered and dying, bleeding as if neither had a limit to the crimson that poured out of their cuts. Their chakra was all but little droplets in their system, but they were home.

Sakura should have been happy that her boys were back, but in fact, she was quite the opposite.

She was livid beyond words.

After the war, it seemed that Sasuke was willing to submit to Konoha—which would have simply cost her and Tsunade a mountain of paperwork and interrogations, but that was a demon that they could handle.

But damned it, Naruto just had to include an unnecessary battle of testosterone into play.

He refused to let 'that chicken-haired bastard,' back into their walls until he literally beat the ever-living hell out of him.

So cue a three-hour montage of chidori's and rasengans, mixed with Sasuke's new usage of his Sharingan pitted against Naruto's Nine Tails form, with the two of them yelling curses at one another that not even Hidan would utter in his immortal lifetime.

Sakura knew that she, Tsunade, Shizune, Ino and the rest of the Konoha hospital would have to pour their own personal reserves of chakra to mend the two idiots; and as the minutes passed by and she found that their 'little skirmish' had stretched beyond what it should have lasted, her worry broiled into a very fragile temper.

The very first thing she did when she found her teammates half dead, but still breathing, was screech with the fury of a thousand war hawks and punch the ground with a chakra laden fist, effectively creating a line of destruction at least two miles long.

It took a good number of deep breaths to calm her enraged state before she shifted the two on her shoulders and carried them off to the hospital.

…

Naruto was the first to wake, finding that nearly every inch of his body was bandaged and hurting as if a meteor had plunged straight through him. He blinked, quickly finding that even a simple twitch of the eye sent tremors of pain through his system.

He was far better looking than Sasuke, however, who was equally as bandaged, his exposed skin glittering with stitches.

Naruto had a cheeky little grin on his face to how vulnerable the Uchiha could look: a boy who was so weighted by revenge that he nearly gave his body to a literal snake of a man had actually manage to look so frail. His snow white cheekbones were protruding out from his malnourished skin, despite their comatose state he had bags under his eyes, his breathing was feathery from an almost fatal lack of chakra, and the eternal crease in his brow had softened into one of peaceful slumber.

Just when a sigh of relief decided to slip through, the buried line across Sasuke's forehead reemerged. Naruto stifled a laugh; he was still as light a sleeper as ever.

"Oi, bastard, how's that for a 'welcome home?'"

Sasuke snorted something along the lines of, "Shut up, dobe," and turned on his side, wincing the slightest bit. Naruto raised an eyebrow and threw the nearest item at Sasuke, which happened to be an apple that either Sakura or Hinata must have left on his night table. Sasuke, with the reflexes of a prodigious, Uchiha-blooded cat, caught the apple and hissed: though Naruto was unsure if it was pure anger or agony that instigated his reaction.

All at once, the sound of a familiar tinkling voice seeped into their room, prompting Naruto to go completely still for once in his life. He flickered a sideways glance to his hospital roommate and whispered out of the side of his mouth,

"Shit, bastard, act like you're asleep."

Sasuke inquired in a rather cranky manner, forcing Naruto's eyes to widen all the more, his whispers becoming desperate upon the encroaching medic nin's chakra.

"Sakura-chan will kill us if she sees us awake and moving, now lay back down!"

Sasuke snorted in what sounded like defiance, but closed his eyes regardless: he claimed that it was purely mediation to take his mind off the burning sensation in his side. Naruto quickly flopped back onto his bed and snapped his eyes closed, waiting in anticipation for that menacing click of the hospital door, the light padding footsteps of his teammate, and finally the comforting aroma of her perfume right before the storm of nagging that she would surely shower upon them.

He could not help but flinch when the door clicked open.

Dammit, she was humming, why the hell was she humming?

He regulated his breathing as she made her way in the rift between their two beds; he could hear the sound of pages flipping, assuming she was glancing over their injuries for probably the hundredth time. She heaved that heavy sigh she always did before she cursed his stupidity, grumbling swear words that he graciously taught her upon his return.

Risking probably his mortal life, he cracked open an eye to see that she was grooming the Uchiha's hair, assuming that he was still knocked out cold.

But something caught Sakura's attention, causing her hand to halt mid stroke and curl into a light fist above Sasuke's cheek.

Sasuke would never admit that his heartbeat rose a little higher when her hand reached for the apple he had so callously left on his pillow, effectively picking it up before setting it on the nightstand with a little too much vigor.

This was not a good sign.

With a bit of cold sweat threatening to soil his skin, he squeezed his eyes closed and did the very best he could to replicate the vulgar sounds he made in his sleep.

To his avail, he could feel the cold, intimidating shadow of Sakura's muscular figure looming over him as her chakra writhed with bubbling anger.

"Naruto…" she crooned dangerously.

Before Naruto could say a word, his nose was clasped in between Sakura's bent forefinger and middle finger. Naruto yelped in pain and helplessly tried to swat off Sakura's hand, his eyes finally shooting open to see the kunoichi's face.

As beautiful as her healthy skin and green eyes were, they were positively terrifying when married with an expression no lesser than irate. Her lips were pursed like the butt-end of a lemon, and smoke nearly seeped from her nostrils.

"How did that apple get from your side to Sasuke-kun's side?"

Naruto chuckled sheepishly and glanced at said Uchiha, who had abandoned his attempt at 'fake-sleeping' and sat upright in his bed, an eyebrow raised in anticipation for his friend's answer. Unable to admit that he had thrown the apple to get a rise out of his friend, Naruto chided playfully,

"Eh, Sakura-chan, why couldn't you be the first face I saw, and not that prissy bastard over there?"

Knowing which buttons to press, Naruto was able to successful deflate Sakura's scowling face into one of exasperation. She exhaled forcefully and sat at Naruto's side with her face clutched tightly in her hands. The medical board covered her tearing eyes; she forced her voice to remain stable, though her body was shaking lightly.

"I thought I lost you two idiots; you barely had a heartbeat. Why do you both have to be so reckless?"

She let her medical board slide down to her knees in effort to will the tears back into her eyes. As stubborn as Sakura was, she was able to calm her breathing, though a small tear was still rolling down her flushed cheeks.

A tan hand found its way to her face and wiped away the droplet, instigating a small gasp from the kunoichi. She whipped her head to the side to stare in disbelief at her friend, but was met eye-to-eye and lip-to-lip with the aforementioned jinchuuriki.

It wasn't a kiss, but it wasn't quite _not_ a kiss.

Naruto swears that he was merely trying to ease the girl's wrenched heart with a light brush of lips across the cheek to dry her tear-stained skin,

But Sakura's unforeseen reaction had caused them to be stuck in a very awkward placement of lips and noses.

If Naruto didn't fear for the very life to be throttled out of him, he would have leaned in further to finish the action with artistic flair, and would have thoroughly rubbed it in the Uchiha's face too.

But Naruto valued the life that Sakura had so valiantly fought to save for him, and recoiled. Jumbled letters and words blurred together into something not at all intelligible, and expected the world of darkness again as Sakura stood up on her feet.

To his astonishment, she said absolutely nothing,

And walked right out of the door.

Befuddled by a number of things, Naruto just cocked his head with brown crinkled; unable to even utter a simple, 'nani' before a plump, red apple socked him square in the cheek and sent him tumbling off the hospital bed. Sasuke snarled,

"Dobe."

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Well, that's that! Sorry if everything feels rushed, I will try to edit later._


	14. Kiba Reprise

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Kiba learned very early on never to cross Uchiha Sasuke.

The first time he had asked Sakura out was before he returned to Konoha, but Hana and Akamaru so lovingly decided to 'chaperone,' or in other words, drain him of all his savings by engorging themselves on expensive appetizers and exotic meat dishes.

That night was not exactly what he was dreaming of when he tried to take Sakura out on the town, so after the war and after the Uchiha was readmitted back into Konoha, he thought it fit on their downtime to ask Sakura out on another date—one without siblings or canine companions.

Perhaps it was a little sudden, because the heavy air of warfare was still looming over their building as numerous political papers toppled over Tsunade's desk and injuried shinobi still riddled the hospital.

But through it all, Sakura maintained a strong smile and an even stronger mark diamond on her forehead.

Yes, a little frivolity would suffice, preferably without the companionship of his clan.

.

Although, he would gladly take his sister and dog over the watchful eye of Sasuke any day of the week.

.

Two hours it took for Sakura to heal the burns on his arms, back and legs after said raven-haired bastard unleashed a rather outlandishly sized Katon upon him. Two tubes of pain cream he had to use every week for a good month to reduce swelling and discomfort. Two thousand apologies he had to endure from Sakura on Sasuke's part.

But looking past the ugly marks still shining on his skin, he wouldn't trade that night for all the ryos in Fire Country.

…

He was her first real date after the Uchiha returned home. He didn't try any of those fancy dinners, rather anything regarding food after learning from his past mistakes with his family and friends.

He instead took her to spar on a high set cliff that overlooked most of Konoha; efficiently timing their usual hour long practice before the sunset, so that when they were both sweating and worn out, they could easily relax on the ground while watching the stars poke their little heads out from the sky. He even had a bit of firewood set aside to light for a small bonfire.

When the rhythm of their panting subsided for long heaving breaths, the found themselves lying side-by-side staring straight above them. They said nary a word, but the stench of sweat and small abrasions were enough to confirm their presence to the other. Their clothes were discarded, the night warm with a comfortable breeze. Every so often a small owl or distant night lurker would shatter their silence, although not destructively, rather their songs became a symphony that wrapped numbly around their bodies.

Their skin knitted with goose bumps, Kiba prayed that the fear he was swallowing was not audible in his throat. He turned his head with as much precision as he could muster, and focused his eyes through the thick nightfall.

Her profile was mesmerizing: the way her flushed peach skin shone faintly through the indigo mask, the small smile puckering just the cupid's bow of her lips, the little flutter of her eyelashes in oncoming slumber.

.

Oh shit, wait.

.

Kiba tensed, he didn't want her to fall asleep!

Okay granted, it probably wasn't a good idea to practice so late on such a warm summer night.

He shot up on his hands, though not briskly enough to startle her, and leaned in to whisper her awake.

Really, her smooth dimpled cheeks would look absolutely perfect with two red fangs stitched on.

He leaned in a bit closer.

Her scent was absolutely intoxicating.

A little closer.

Well, maybe he didn't have to wake her entirely.

"Sakura…"

His voice was barely above the black night breeze before his lips rested upon hers. He could feel her stirring awake, not even caring that he let an arrogant smirk stretch across their sewed lips. He lifted his head from hers and watched as those mesmerizing apple eyes opened to stare up at him: they grew a peculiar gold as her skin soaked in flickers of the sunlight.

Kiba froze.

It was nowhere near dawn, and though the summer was warm in atmosphere, it surely did not feel like a meteor when directed upon them. He unconsciously sniffed the air only to smell-

Well, goddammit.

"KATON!"

…

Even though his arms and legs were horribly disfigured with burns for a decent six hours, the look of frustration in Sakura's eye as she lectured an indifferent—yet thoroughly enraged—Sasuke Uchiha into oblivion was one of the most attractive things he had ever seen.

Really, two Inuzuka triangles would fit perfectly on her plump peach cheeks.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_I was battling with myself which person to upload next, and I ended up choosing Kiba._

_I wanted to do something involving his clan, but that would take a huge turn and force this into a primarily KibaSaku, or at least an angst one-sided KibaSaku._

_Anyway, hope you enjoy!_

_Please let me know what you think!_


	15. Sai Reprise

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

The jaws of Team Seven could sink no lower past the ground; their chins were dirty with soil in reaction to their resident artist nin's request.

"I said, 'I wish to draw you,' Ugly."

Since Sai was well… Sai, his voice was of the utmost composure without any hint of playful banter or flirtation. It was an adequate response, one that needed no flamboyant display of disbelief, however since he was dealing with the notorious Team Seven, flamboyant was precisely the reaction he was served.

"YOU SICK BASTARD!"

Such vulgarity was expected from Naruto.

"No way, you'd just draw me with an ugly mole or a huge forehead!"

Such suspicion was expected from Sakura.

"But you do have a big forehead."

And such shameless comments were suspected from Sai.

However, Sasuke had surpassed expectations by having a crackling Chidori running along the lines of his arm, a sick, disapproving glint in his eye. Words were superficial in their situation; every known curse known to the shinobi world was expressed through the rippling muscle along his arm in lust to tear Sai's beating jugular from his throat.

Sai was honestly confused, what was so taboo about drawing his pink-haired teammate? He had simply voiced his desire to paint a portrait of his friend.

.

Well… He may have requested a little more than a casual portrait session.

.

"There is no way in hell I'm going to let you draw a nude picture of me, Sai."

Hearing the words dribbling out of Sakura's mouth only forced an even harsher red on Naruto's angry face.

"YOU SICK BASTARD," he repeated.

Sai's face was smooth with innocent inquiry.

"Nude portraits are a dignified form of art. Besides, Hag has adequate skin, which makes up for her less-than-desirable proportions."

Sakura's face was crimson in an instant, a myriad of emotions stirring in her vessel of 'less-than-desirable proportions.' She wanted to punch the ink out of Sai for eloquently insulting her body shape, yet at the same time she wanted to grin like an idiot for the indirect compliment. Sai was blatantly honest with just about everything, so even the smallest form of praise without the tarnish of his 'playful banter' was purely from the heart, whether he realized the meaning of his words or not.

"YOU SICK-"

"Shut up, Naruto!"

It was a peaceful spring day, and for once they decided just to revel in the smooth breeze that drifted through the fields instead of beat each other to a jelly chakra pulp. Yet, their restraint was starting to seem all in vain as Sakura stood hunched with her fists clenched, Naruto held as many kunai and senbon as he could muster, and Sasuke flexed the magnified Chidori along his arm. All the while, Sai stood with his usual empty smile, paintbrushes and ink already in his grasp as if he expected Sakura to actually agree to his request.

Really, it could only be Team Seven to cause this much trouble on such a simple spring's day.

"I don't care if it is art, you're not drawing me nude!"

"Then may I draw you wearing a kimono?"

The three original members of Team Seven paused as if they had been casted as stone, only the sound of Sasuke's diminishing Chidori sparks glided through the morning breeze. The very edge of Sai's lip lifted from their silence as he continued,

"You always said you wanted a picture from me, Ugly. I'm offering you a free portrait."

Sakura could not deny his statement; she had wanted a custom picture from him, though he constantly brushed off the notion. But now, he suddenly had sprung the idea on her like the stealthiest sneak attack, and she had shamefully failed to recognize his trap.

Damned it, she wanted that picture.

"It better be a long kimono."

…

It was a long kimono, in fact it was absolutely demure: thick, fitted, a subdued pastel color. Overall, it was rather flattering on Sakura—though not flattering in the sense that it made the kunoichi any more attractive, rather it was a color that would compliment the hues of her skin to create an aesthetically pleasing palette for his piece. Sakura should have expected as much from the artist.

Still, Sakura was raised among many powerful gazes: Sasuke's Sharingan, Neji's Byakugan, the disapproving stare of her own mother, but all of those paled to the infinite depths of Sai's charcoal eyes.

They smoldered like a black flame, lolling over her body like an omnipresent light. Even with such thick layers of clothing on, she felt completely exposed under his scrutiny: it was the studious glower of an artist, a focused nirvana so to speak. Little by little he was picking apart the small hills created by the cloth, the pink and purple tones staining her skin, the microscopic hairs at the nape of her neck. Even though he was without any kekkei genkai, she was immobilized.

"Hag," he said suddenly. Sakura snapped out of what seemed to be an extraordinarily powerful genjutsu only to see that most of Sai's supplies was wrapped and tucked away, the canvas held out in front of him for her to see.

Words could not describe the masterful strokes of the painting, the deliberateness and accuracy of his hand, the almost tangible essence to the two-dimensional woman on the cotton canvas. She felt selfish for claiming that the beautiful being on the cloth was her; it felt like a lie. Taking cue from years spent with Naruto, she played off her embarrassment and laughed haltingly,

"I think you were a little too generous, Sai. That's a very cute pink-haired woman in your painting, but I don't think it's me."

"Of course it's you, Ugly," Sai stated openly.

As her viridian met his black, she expected the accustomed falsity of his smile and shallow expression,

But the smoldering of his gaze was still burning as strong as it had been before.

Eager to change the conversation and leaves as quickly as possible, Sakura stammered with her hand half-held out towards the painting.

"H-how much do I owe you for this, Sai?"

"It's no charge."

"Really, I think I should-"

"What is the point of monetary profit from it?"

"Well you spent so long to draw this custom portrait after I've been yelling at you for weeks to paint me something."

"I painted you, because I wanted to."

Sakura's peach skin grew hot with a very familiar blush.

"S-still, I think I should at least pay you something for this! You put a lot of effort in it."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Sai smirked—a gesture Sakura had assumed that he was ignorant to—and said stoically,

"Sakura."

Hearing her name escape his pale lips for what felt like the first time brought an even brighter flush to her face. But before she could retort, or cool the embarrassing red on her cheeks, her lips immediately welcomed a second presence.

Sai held her in no manner, the painting still clutched lightly in his hand, but his mouth was flush against hers. The action either lasted hours or seconds, Sakura couldn't tell, but as soon as the cool spring wind rifted between their parted lips, Sai and his art supplies had vanished into the afternoon. And Sakura just stood there, though not quite alone.

Faintly, the smell of cinders burned the air, and a certain kyuubi's chakra was writhing around restlessly.

"YOU SICK BASTARD!"

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Eh, some of these feel forced, but that's because I'm trying to rely a fair bit of information in brief 1000 word chapters, _

_anyway, enjoy the fluff!_

_Good day, dears!_


	16. Shikamaru Reprise

_**Disclaimer**_: I do not own Naruto, mmkay?

_"You know, you have the entire male population of Konoha wrapped around your little finger?" _

_Because Gaara was more observant than people gave him credit for._

_This is in a perfect world in which Neji is not dead and Sasuke has been accepted back on Team 7 after all of his traitorous shenanigans._

**…**

Thinking ahead was a specialty of his. He could methodically plan out the rest of his life with particular ease: in a few years perhaps he would tell Ino of the simmering attraction he harbored for her, years after that they may marry and endure the troublesome journey of living together and having children, then years after that, once the children were raised and had offspring of their own, they would be dead.

It was a stable plan, really.

The troublesome thing was having to make an effort to instigate such series of events. Really, did everything have to be prompted by specifically him?

Everything was an absolute drag.

And everyone could vouch for his laziness; merely the mention of his name paired with lack of enthusiasm on missions elicited a dramatic eye-roll followed by a huff.

He wasn't ashamed by his lax attitude, that would be too troublesome.

He preferred the term, "methodical" and "controlled."

In short, Shikamaru was rarely the impulsive type.

Acting on impulse was something for those without a plan, someone who was completely unaware of the repercussions of their actions.

Shikamaru was never one for impulse.

But he did feel a certain _compulsion_ to kiss a familiar rosette kunoichi one afternoon.

…

Shikamaru needed glasses, his teammates discovered one mission. Their captain was straining his already pseudo constipated expression to unforeseen extremes. His aim was poor, evident in his missed shuriken and easily blocked punches.

They took him to get glasses, nice thin wire frames that accented the masculinity in his noble Nara face.

He was resistant and grumpy,

But boy did he look attractive.

Words courtesy of Ino—and Temari during a brief mission to Suna—but Shikamaru was reluctant to admit that he, a normal shadow on an unappealing rock, was attractive.

So he chose often not to wear them.

The ramen woman left him alone, young genin did not coo over him, and random female villagers did not ogle him—

Well, at least, he thought that much, because he couldn't see them: they were merely blurs floating along a green or beige background. The only blurs he could really identify were the heinous blonde locks of Naruto and the even more heinous pink locks of Sakura.

Though it was bad for his already terrible vision, and frankly it irritated his friends that the only time he donned his spectacles were during missions, Shikamaru was quick to adapt to recognizing the different blurred forms of his friends.

Not to mention that with his eyesight handicapped, he discovered how truly annoying everyone was by the tenor of their voice.

Ino was too loud, Naruto even louder.

Choji's chewing was absolutely barbaric.

Kiba had a weird accent, probably due to his fangs and arrogant nature.

Sai was far too calm when discussing genitalia and assassinations.

Hinata's stuttering was quite irritating when you couldn't see her meekly twiddling her fingers.

Really he shouldn't continue, because his opinion of Team Gai and even the Hokage herself was less than diplomatic.

…

It was prior to him addressing Ino's budding infatuation with his own reluctant, subdued affections—and like the male having one last night of frivolity before wedding his mate—he felt the…

_Compulsion_ to do the same.

Although he didn't quite know what to do.

He could skip his morning training in favor of cloud watching.

No, his pantry was empty; so even if he did delay his training for something less physically demanding, he would still be in a house without food.

What a drag.

…

He was halfway to the market, glasses tucked safely in his pocket for cloud viewing later.

The blurs were peacefully passing by, the smell of fresh fruits and cooked noodles drifting from open restaurants and markets.

Then, a curious array of colored blurs was lined up in a small triangle, maybe a group of friends chatting in the street about something or other.

There was a yellow blur, assumedly Naruto,

A blur so dark it had to be black, assumedly Sai,

And a rather short blur of pink, most definitely Sakura.

If it were anyone else but the lazy genius, they would have just walked on past,

But this was Nara Shikamaru.

Cunning, logical, Shikamaru.

.

He was not the impulsive type,

He preferred, "methodical."

.

Stride unbroken, he casually slid up to the little pink smudge, though curiously looking a little over her head, and bent down to place a poorly—if not ingeniously aimed—peck on her forehead.

His lips were ashamedly chapped, and her forehead was soft with a bit of texture from covered blemishes, and it smelled of her familiar perfume.

Though far from quixotic, it was enough to suffice the lazy genius for at least a year.

He raised his head back up, a bit of forced puzzlement crossing his face as he inquired, "Ino?"

Ino was a fair bit taller than her bubblegum friend, and if she had been the one standing in front of Shikamaru, his aim would have been utterly perfect.

Granted, Shikamaru was a certified genius.

Although…

"Shikamaru…"

Dammit.

That voice, like the gently violent grazes of Satan's nails, was all too familiar.

Unfortunately, Naruto was not the only blonde-haired shinobi in Konoha.

"Nara…"

And unfortunately, Sai was not the only shinobi to wear black.

Before he could fumble his glasses from his pocket, his assumptions were solidified by the cold, manicured smack of Ino's right hand, and the foul smelling smolder of Sasuke's fire jutsu.

.

Ino called him an 'idiot.'

Sasuke called him a word a little more vulgar.

Sakura called him 'impulsive.'

And perhaps, for now, he would let them assume that much of him.

.

It was too troublesome to correct them anyway.

**…**

**_Author's Note:_**

_Shikamaru was a little tricky, but I enjoy the thought of him with glasses._

_Good day!_


End file.
